Book of the Shadewood
Book of the Shadewood, written by Jullafield Myzel. =Prologue= Many strange myths and folklore legends exist about the frozen forest southeast of Frostkeep. It is for us almost natural to assume that these are all untrue, or at least wildly exaggerated, but my experience leads me to believe that stories like these shouldn’t be dismissed just like that. Many folklore stories have a basis of truth. And truth is that which I always seek. In this book I will make an attempt to state exactly to what extent the stories are true. To find out this truth I have organised an expedition into the forest. I must say that this book would not have been possible without the brave ones that accompanied me and risked their lives, or even sacrificed them, in the process. Among them were several priests, who were mainly concerned not with gaining knowledge but pacifying the forest. There was also a half-orc who deserves special attention, because he turned against us in the end. There won’t be a detailed description of the expedition itself. This book will be focused on revealing the insights I had during this expedition. Summary of the Myths First, I must summarize the myths. The first popular folklore legend tells of a she-devil living in the forest. According to the story, she takes pleasure in luring male travellers to their deaths. Also, she would have kidnapped several children from Frostkeep, who were never seen again. She was supposedly protected by a corrupted ranger, that was said to be killed by a Frostkeep guard. The second myth is an even more disturbing one. It tells of an order of twisted druids living in the forest. It is said that they perform dark rituals at a site of megaliths, and that they eat children. There is a third myth, which I already knew to be true since I had seen the proof with my own eyes. As long as people can remember there have been sightings of large, upright-walking man-wolves. These sightings have occurred from Shadewood Forest to Ashrindale and Tearwood Forest. I believe them to be werewolves, and the folklore says the same. The Druids and the Wolves I will start where our journey led us to first: the standing stones. This particular site lies in the western part of the forest. I learned of it’s location through maps I studied in Frostkeep’s archives, as well as drawings of the site, and this is the place I wanted to go first for closer observation. What I call “the standing stones” is in fact a number of tall megaliths, placed in a wide circle around a kind of altar. The altar consisted of a low, flat rock, surrounded by three taller stones. Bones lay around the altar, both humanoid and animal. Close observation also revealed runes on the three stones of the altar. I had some difficulty in translating them, but I know for sure that they had a connection to the god Malar. This obviously proved my suspicion that it was a ritual site, and that it was most probably connected with the evil druids. But there is much more evidence we uncovered. We encountered a woman named Sabell while wandering the forest, who led us to a site where a convoy of traders was attacked a day ago. It was truly an awful sight. The carts were completely destroyed, as if ripped apart, and the smell of dry blood was still in the air. The very dirt and snow was tainted red. Here, we learned that we had been watched. We were attacked by werewolves and druids as well, the final proof that the two were connected. With our brave priests and warriors, we managed to force them into retreat. I realised this was my opportunity to find their hideout, so we followed their tracks. What we found was too incredible for words. The tracks led to a cave deep within the woods, the entrance shaped like a giant wolf head. Inside, a great battle against druids and lycanthropes awaited us. This was when our companion half-orc turned on us, when he turned out to be a follower of Malar himself. The caverns were infested with werewolves and worgs, as we expected. They were long and dark, but there was another curious oddity we encountered. Through the long caverns and corridors we could follow a trail of symbols. I recognised them as symbols of the church of Malar, each representing another aspect of it’s philosophy (even though one of our poor priests, who went insane after he suffered a near-death experience and could only utter ravings, thought to see a deeper meaning in them). In the correct order, I could translate the symbols as follows: 1: eternity 2: life and death 3: afterlife 4: honor in combat 5: survival 6: strength 7: nature 8: sacrifice 9: hunt 10: survival of the fittest. I believe the symbols must be read backwards, the tenth being the most important symbol to the cult. Perhaps it is appropriate to explain more about Malar. Malar, also known as the Beastlord, is a savage nature deity that emphasizes hunting. Malar takes great pleasure in instilling fear in his pray, and in brutal and bloody kills. In general, Malar is the deity of predators and the basics of predatory existence: survival of the fittest, savagery and instinct. Members of the Church of Malar are usually lycanthropes and twisted druids. Based on observations, I can say that the church of Malar is divided into two groups: the priests or druids of Malar, and their followers: beasts and shapechangers including lycanthropes. I highly doubt that the druids themselves are lycanthropes. I believe the druids “create” more followers by ritually infecting captives with lycanthrophy. The church of Malar would certainly be the most logical place for any werewolf to reside. Sacrificial rituals are most probably also performed. The She-Devil Personally, I did not expect to find anything regarding this odd tale. We found out, however, that this story also contains much truth. We found a cave, not far from the site of the standing stones. Inside lived a pack of wolves, but that was not all we found. There was much evidence that someone had been living there, although the place was ravaged. We found various pieces of furniture: chairs, bookcases, chests and more. I now believe that this was the residence of the she-devil. And this devil, we actually met. Sabell’s identity was revealed during our final battle in the caverns, when she pulled off her hood and showed us all her two horns. I believe she was a tiefling, but one of good heart, since she helped us a great deal in our quest and even fought on our side against the followers of Malar. I don't believe she has kidnapped any children, nor did she seem like a succubus. The corrupted ranger from the tales also seemed to be still alive. I believe they used to be lovers, and that he simply protected her from the savageness of unknowing and aggressive peasants. Ironically, this ranger eventually did become corrupted, since he turned out to be a follower of Malar, and stood against us in that battle. Both Sabell and the Ranger died. Category:Lore Category:Books